Editorial: Good reason for concern about Marin homeless camps

John Coen, open space/park ranger for the San Rafael Police Department walks through a burned area at the end of Kerner Blvd. on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014, in San Rafael, Calif. The 80 acre plot, known as the Canalways area, is a popular homeless encampment. Cities and towns in Marin have been battling a number of marsh fires suspected to be connected to the encampments. (Frankie Frost/Marin Independent Journal)
Frankie Frost

CAMPFIRES SET amid drought-dried grass and brush is a combination asking for trouble.

That's what we've learned recently as local firefighters have had to battle several wildland fires, blazes that would be expected in the fall but not the winter.

The weekend's welcome rain might have helped a little, but the fires combine two local problems that add up to a dangerous third.

Homeless encampments are not new. They are evidence of Marin's "invisible" homeless, who tend to be ignored, whether they're finding cover in open space lands or out on the street.

The out-of-control camp fires couldn't be ignored. They were visible and their threat to nearby properties all too real.

Last year was the driest year on record for Marin County and 2014 is not exactly off to a soggy start. The grass and brush is ready fuel for a campfire that either by accident or carelessness grows beyond its intended confines.

In San Rafael, firefighters have battled one blaze that grew from a homeless camp behind Home Depot. The city says it was the sixth fire in the marsh in the past year.

The city's team of officers deployed to crack down on homeless camps says it often finds lighters, propane tanks, lighter fluid and barbecues.

On Jan. 2, a fire at a homeless encampment burned 5.6 acres behind The Village shopping center in Corte Madera. A fire on Sept. 27, also believed to be from a homeless camp near the shopping center, burned a half acre.

Corte Madera Fire Chief Roger Sprehn says the threat is a danger to the campers and firefighters.

Last month, town officials got an earful from nearby residents who demanded action. Officials are looking at removing some of the tall grass and brush.

San Rafael Mayor Gary Phillips has been trying to develop a new, countywide strategy to provide more shelter for the homeless.

We are seeing what happens when they make their home amid the brush and weeds of dried marshland or an open hillside.

He and the county say they are committed to pursuing the goal of opening a new shelter to replace the rotating emergency shelter program that's been hosted by local churches and synagogues. While a highly laudable initiative by caring and civic-minded citizens, the program's volunteer corps is growing tired. That's understandable.

Their efforts should have enabled local leaders the chance to get plans in place for a more permanent solution.

Homelessness is a countywide problem. Recent wildfires and a proliferation of camps add a message of serious danger to the problem.

So far, we've been fortunate the fires have been stopped before they have caused any property damage.

But even small fires should be reason enough for the development of a long-needed plan to provide an alternative to the current quandary and possibly save lives and remove a growing hazard.